Benanti, since its refounding in 1988, is one of the most esteemed, renowned and prestigious producers of Etna. Thanks to meticulous and careful work both in the vineyard and in the cellar, and to the family management of a history whose historical epicentre is on the eastern side of the volcano. After the patriarch Giuseppe, one of the people with the profoundest knowledge of the territory, today at the helm of the winery are his sons Antonio and Salvino, who have been able to combine oenological expertise, diversification of the cru, and communication savoir fair.
Benanti wines are "without shortcuts for quality", and they interpret the volcano without compromise: sometimes even extreme minerality, therefore, which transport us ideally into every cru, from rock to rock, from volcanic material to volcanic material with elegance and refinement. Settled in the Etnean wine scene since the beginning of the eighteenth century, the family today cultivates vines that brilliantly surpass their century-old age, often ungrafted vines, authentic narrators of the territory in all its nuances.
Classic blend of Nerello Mascalese (80-85%) and Nerello Cappuccio (15-20%), Benanti’s Etna Rosso comes from sandy, volcanic, mineral-rich soils located on the north, south-west and south-east slopes of the volcano. The vines, from 10 to 60 years old, are cultivated both with traditional saplings and espaliers. The altitudes vary from 450 to 900 metres above sea level, with mountain and high-hill climate, humid and rainy in the coldest season, high ventilation and significant diurnal temperature excursions.
In the cellar, about 20% of the Nerello Mascalese matures in used barriques, while the remaining 80%, like the Nerello Cappuccio, only touches steel. The result is an exemplary Etna Rosso for immediacy and territorial frankness. Full ruby red to the eye, the bouquet is intense, with nuances of vanilla and ripe fruit. On the palate it is immediately elegant, harmonic, of remarkable persistence, with sapidity and minerality at the forefront on the good body. Perfect with earthy first courses, red meats and mature cheeses. A versatile wine that can also be paired with fish or white meat dishes.
